PICO Partners With RACE COUNTS Initiative to Compare Equality of Minority Groups in San Joaquin County

San Joaquin County residents, overall, are struggling to prosper, researchers say.

And while the community is lagging behind other counties, the largest group of people affected by disparities continues to be minorities, particularly black residents, which make up 6.7 percent of the county’s population.

“It’s clear that race continues to be a major predictor of success and life chances,” according to the Advancement Project California, creators of RACE COUNTS, an initiative and web tool that measures disparities in California’s 58 counties.

The nonprofit, which partnered with University of California’s Program for Environmental and Regional Equity, PICO National Network and California Calls, looked at seven key measures — democracy, economic opportunity, crime and justice, access to health care, healthy built environment, education and housing — to show how minorities fare from each other.

Racial disparity: how far each racial group is doing compared to the best performing group.

Impact: how many people are affected based on a county’s population.

“California has long been known as a beacon for progressive politics: a land of hope and promise — dubbed the ‘Golden State’ 50 years ago in 1968,” according to the Advancement Project. “But for many communities of color and Indigenous people, this idealistic vision of California has never been the reality.”

John Kim, executive director of the Advancement Project, said Latinos in California continue to be the largest group affected by inequities because of their population size (14.5 million) but “black Californians were the most heavily weighed down by disparities — they have the worst rates on 18 out of 41 indicators.”

Chris Ringewald, associate director of research for the Advancement Project, said San Joaquin County is performing below average, including in employment rates and health insurance rates, compared to other counties.

Numerous cities have dedicated public money to similar efforts in the face of increased immigration enforcement under the Trump administration, including Los Angeles and Chicago. But the Fresno City Council voted down a proposal in June to contribute public money to such a legal defense fund. “Even so, our community did not leave that day feeling defeated. We felt empowered,” Faith in Fresno organizer Sukaina Hussain said.

The People’s Assembly is a series of workshops aimed at giving neighbors the tools to become community organizers and help find solutions to those problems. Faith in the Valley is a nonprofit organization that believes a different and better future is possible if people start working together.

Faith in the Valley believes that by coming together as a region, we can leverage investment in our communities across the Valley, dramatically impact policies that benefit the most vulnerable members of our region, and build the power we need to make the Central Valley a place where all people can have safe and healthy lives.